


Come Bearing Books

by conceptstage



Series: Multi-Chapter Critical Role [1]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-13
Updated: 2019-05-19
Packaged: 2020-03-02 20:51:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18818770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/conceptstage/pseuds/conceptstage
Summary: Essik gets some unsolicited advice about how to flirt with an introverted, red headed wizard.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> He's gonna turn out to be evil or something, I just know it. But I'm gonna have fun with it while it lasts.

Essik was annoyed. He wasn’t often rattled, he was well known for his calm demeanor, his level head, and his dry sense of humor, like a respectable Prodigy. But there were certain things that he couldn’t abide. Obliviousness was one. 

He had batted his eyelashes, he had sat close enough that their knees were touching, he had brushed away a nonexistent piece of lint as an excuse to run his fingers across the back of the human wizard’s neck but it all seemed to pass over his head without a reaction.

“Mr. Widogast,” Essik said, gently pushing the spell book out from in front of Caleb’s face.

His blue eyes followed it for a moment before letting his attention shift to Essik. “Ah, ja, Shadowhand?”

“You may call me Essik, there’s no need to be so formal. May I call you Caleb?”

Caleb’s eyes flicked back down to the book. “If you wish. This is fascinating. How long have your people had knowledge of this magic?”

Essik resisted the urge to pout. He wanted to get out of this interaction with at least some of his dignity after all. “Since the time of the Luxon,” he said, gently pushing aside Caleb’s fingers, letting them linger a little more than necessary, so that he could flip back through the book to a set of notes on the history of the school. “The light imbued us with knowledge far greater than any before. Our god gave us the power to hold fate and future and past in our hands and mold them to our will.” Caleb looked up to meet his eyes and Essik smirked suggestively. “And I, for one, am very good with my hands.”

Caleb blinked and, for a moment, Essik thought maybe he was finally realizing his intentions. Caleb shut the book and sat it down in his chair as he got to his feet. “That reminds me of something I read the other day, let me get your opinion on this…”

Essik sighed and sagged back in the chair, letting his arms flop to his sides. This was beginning to feel hopeless.

There was movement in the corner of his eyes and when he glanced over he had to swallow any reaction to the sight of the monk human as she watched him carefully from the other side of the room. He hadn’t even heard her come in, but there she was, leaning against the wall and smirking at him insufferably, a single pierced eyebrow raised teasingly. He cleared his throat and quickly sat up straight, folding his legs together and sitting his clasped hands in his lap. He could tell from her face that it was too late. Someone, at least, had figured out his intentions and it was the last person he would have wished.

“Caleb,” the monk, he forgot her name, called.

The wizard glanced at her briefly before turning back to the shelves. “Ja?”

“Nott wanted your help with something. Something about some kind of device she found in the courtyard?”

Caleb frowned and started towards the door. “Excuse me, Essik, I should see what this is about.”

When they were alone, they sat in silence for a few minutes before it got to be too much. He knew that she wanted to say something. “So, how are you settling in?” he asked kindly, betraying nothing on his face. She didn’t answer, just stared at him. He wasn’t sure where she’d been trained but he knew an interrogation method when he saw one. She has letting him stew in the awkwardness, letting the silence fester until he revealed something, anything, just to make it stop. He cleared his throat again and shifted in his chair, resolving not to answer anything she asked him.

“Don’t take it personally,” she said, surprising him.

He looked over at her and tilted his head in confusion. “Take… what?”

“Caleb. He’s bad at social cues. The dude’s a mess.”

Essik turned sharply away from her knowing brown eyes. “I have no idea to what you’re referring, I assure you.”

She snickered. “Assure all you want, man. Can I just give you some general advice, then? It’s nothing to do with seducing him or anything, I promise.”

Essik hesitated, gritting his teeth painfully. “I… suppose…”

“Next time, come bearing books. Doesn’t have to be important books, if you have some old tales from your culture you’re alright with sharing, or, like, something history related? That’ll do it. He doesn’t like touching, you’re gonna wanna work up to that.”

He still didn’t look at her, choosing instead to flip through his spell book like he was looking for something particular. “Anything else?” he asked, his voice bored and detached. 

“Yeah, just one question. What exactly are your intentions? You just looking for a one-off? A fling? Are you, Gods forbid, serious about him?”

“I… haven’t decided yet.”

“Well, when you do, you’re gonna wanna be as clear as possible. Trust me, if there is any ambiguity he will error on the side of caution and assume you’re plotting to kill him.”

The door opened then and Caleb stepped back inside. He glared at her but she shrugged, unaffected. “Nott didn’t ask for me, she wasn’t even in the courtyard.”

She grinned and pushed off the wall, slipping through the open door. “Oops?” she said, unconvincingly, shutting the door behind her.

Caleb sighed and moved back over to sit beside Essik, picking up the spell book. “Sorry about that. She’s… Beau,” he said, waving his hand uselessly.

Beau, right, that was her name. 

Essik gave Caleb a kind smile. “It’s no trouble. We had a lovely conversation.”

Caleb blinked at him. “You had a lovely conversation… with Beau?” He seemed suspicious but turned back to the book. “You’d be one of the first.” It seemed like a good natured ribbing instead of an actual insult. When he’d first met these people he thought them to be just the run-of-the-mill mercenary types, but they were clearly closer than that. They were similar to a Din in and of themselves, a family they made on their own, with no actual blood relations.

“Yes, it was… odd but enlightening.”

“She usually is. Shall we move on to the second spell?”

Essik smiled and reclined back leisurely in his chair, one arm across the back behind Caleb. “Yes, let’s.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't planning on continuing but... here we are.

Nott blinked up at Caleb, her eyes wide in surprise as his words processed in her mind. “Sa-Say that again?”

Caleb frowned and tiled his head in confusion. “Shadowhand Essik is coming over today.” He waved the letter in his hand awkwardly. “He says he wants to teach me another spell.”

Nott and Jester exchanged panicked looks. “We don’t have time!” Jester exclaimed. 

Nott nodded. “We can do it, we just need to start right now and recruit the others.”

“What exactly is going on?” Caleb asked, worry rising in his voice as his friends seemed more and more frantic. “Is something wrong with Essik?”

“They’re on a first name basis! This is farther along than we suspected. You get Caleb dressed and I’ll round up Beau and Fjord and then we’ll switch off.”

Jester nodded and rushed passed Caleb and down the hallway. Caleb looked between the open door and Nott’s face. “ _ Liebling _ , what-”

Jester suddenly ran back inside and started pulling him out of the room. “I forget to bring him with me!” Jester called, pulling him swiftly along to his room through the library. She threw open his closet and pulled out a very nice, clean outfit that he had never seen in his life.

“How long has that been there?”

“Get undressed. Put this on.”

“Why?”

“There’s no time, this is an emergency!”

Caleb groaned but started getting undressed, gently laying his books on the bed. He was removing his pants as Jester started forcing the new shirt over his arms. “Wah- Hey! Careful!” It was a very lovely blue cotton shirt and then she wrestled him into a brown vest with red stripes on the silk lining. “Where did you get this? This is too expensive.”

“Don’t worry about it.” She pulled his pants down and off in one swift movement, knocking off his feet and onto the bed. He shivered from the cold but took the new, black trousers that she handed him.

“Why am I getting so dressed up?” he asked.

She grinned but didn’t respond. While he buttoned up his trousers she forced clean white socks and a pair of black shoes onto his feet. The door opened and Nott rushed in.

“Good, he’s dressed. The Shadowhand arrived, Beau and Fjord are distracting him but he’s asking for Caleb.”

“This is about Essik?” Caleb asked, his voice getting high in confusion.

Nott ignored him. “Go get Caduceus and start on the drinks, I’ll do the hair.”

Jester nodded and finished tying his shoe and a hard yank before running out of the room. Nott climbed up onto the bed behind him and started running a brush through his hair, tugging hard on the knots and brushing away the dandruff.

“Ow- Ow! Hey, what- Ow!”

She pulled the brush through his hair several times until she could pull it through with no resistance, and then she pulled it all back into a low bun near the nape of his neck. She walked around to stand on his legs and gave his face an appreciative look. “It’s a good thing you’ve been keeping up on shaving. You don’t want me to to that super quick too.”

“You are not coming near me with a razor.”

Nott licked her palm and then reached up to push his loose hair back out of his face so that they fall around the sides instead. “So handsome,” she praised, grinning at him.

“Will you tell me what’s going on now?”

“No time. Up, up. Up to the garden.” She pulled him up to his feet and started shoving at the back of his knees to push him out of the room. “Essik is in the garden!”

“I’m going, I’m going.” He walked down the hall alone, rolling his sleeves up to his elbows. He walked up the spiral staircase. He climbed up the ladder and pushed the hatch open enough to climb up.

There was only one person up there, admiring the lights in the tree with a tea cup in his hand. Essik turned to look at him and stared at him silently for a moment, revealing nothing on his face. 

“Caleb,” he said, finally smiling. “You look… lovely.”

“I- Thanks.”

Essik chuckled and waved his hand to the small, round table beside him and the single matching tea cup. “This is yours, I believe.” He sighed and looked out over the side of the tower and muttered under his breath. “I’m two hundred years old, I should not be set up like this so easily…”

Caleb cleared his throat and started over to stand next to him, picking up the tea cup. He took a sip and nearly spit it back out, coughing into his fist while Essik chuckled. “There’s booze in this,” he said, obviously.

“There is. The tea cups are a bit deceptive, I’ll admit.” He cleared his throat as well and downed the entire cup. “Was this your idea?” he asked, gesturing to Caleb’s clothes and then to the tea cups.

Caleb blinked at him and looked down at his own body. “Was what my idea?”

Essik watched him closely and then sighed. “You have no clue, do you? That should not be as endearing as it is.”

“I have no idea to what you’re referring.”

Essik chuckled and nodded. “I know.” He glanced back to the hatch in the floor when he heard a subtle squeak and spotted two large, yellow eyes peeking out at him. He gave the snooping goblin a little wave and she quickly shut the hatch, leaving the two men alone by the light of the sun jars.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't even know, yall. I kind of love this ship now.

Caleb was walking down the hall, a book open in his hand and reading as he moved. He paused when he heard a light knock on the door. Frowning, Caleb closed his book on his thumb and started towards the door, opening it and wincing at the loud chime the sounded above him.

“Essik?” he started, surprised, as he pulled the door all the way open. “This is a surprise. You usually leave word when you’re coming over.

Essik gave him a diplomatic smile and a small, playful bow. “Caleb, it’s always a joy to see you. May I come inside?”

“Certainly.” He stepped off to the side until the door was hanging open. “What brings you by?”

“Actually, that’s why I didn’t send word. I’ve a bit of a surprise for you.” He paused and cleared his throat, betraying no change of emotion on his face. “For- For all of you.” He stepped inside and waved to someone behind him. “Come along.”

Two servants in fine silks and furs that Caleb had not noticed previously, stepped inside the door, setting off the chime once more. They were carrying a large, red trunk between them.

“Who's at the door?!” Jester yelled from the top of the stairs. 

Beau’s head appeared from the dining room. “It’s Essik!” she called. “Here to see Caleb!” There was a smug expression on her face that Caleb didn’t bother trying to decipher. 

Essik gave her a searing smile. “Ah, Beauregard, always a pleasure. You have spinach in your teeth.” Beau frowned and started licking at her teeth to find it and Essik turned back to Caleb to get his attention. “Shall we to the library? The present is meant for that room in particular.”

“Ah, yes, follow me.” Caleb turned to lead him down the hallway and into the library. Essik followed with the servants staying close behind, still carrying that trunk. 

Once inside the library, they sat it down in the center and Essik waved his hand at them. “That will be all. Thank you, Jhin, Ullan.” The servants bowed shortly and then turned and left. “Would you care to open it or shall I?” The alarm chimed one last time as they left.

Caleb cleared his throat and stepped forward, flipping up the unlocked flap and then pushing the top of the truck up and open. It was stacked full with books of every color, formed into neat, orderly rows. “Oh, fuck. Shit.” Caleb exclaimed, forgetting for a moment that he had company.

To his credit, Essik merely laughed good naturedly. “Do you like your gift?”

Caleb was still gaping at the open trunk, trying to take in what he saw. “There must be two hundred books in here…” he mumbled.

“As a matter of fact there are exactly two hundred books in there. Most of them are from my personal library, duplicates or books I’ve read already.While the majority of those are various history or mythology books, there is a set of Xorhass encyclopedia there, practically brand new, that I think you’ll find fascinating. The rest are from local bookstores, fiction books that I thought you would particularly enjoy.”

“I…” Caleb was at a loss for words and Essik straightened his back and smiled proudly. “I don’t know what to say.  _ Danke schӧn _ . I want to begin reading now but I feel like that would be rude.”

Essik chuckled and started towards the door. “Then I will take my leave. I do so hope you enjoy.”

As Essik opened the library door, he spotted a pink dress and a blue sash dart around the corner and rolled his eyes. If they were going to eavesdrop, the least they could do was not be seen. Before Essik could step out into the hallway completely, Caleb called out to him. 

“Wait!”

Essik paused, curiously, and turned back to look at him. He allowed himself a moment to look the man up and down before settling on his striking blue eyes. “Yes, Caleb?”

“Why… Why are you doing this?”

“I just thought that, if you were going to be spending time here for the foreseeable future, you should have access to as much knowledge of this place a possible.”

Caleb frowned and tilted his head thoughtfully. “ _ Nein _ , no. That’s not it. This… this is personal, this is different. You’re trying to get on my good side.”

“Am I succeeding?”

“One book would have been enough to gain my appreciation. Two books would have made me extremely happy. Five would have gotten you on my good side for sure. But you brought me two hundred books. You want something specific, something you think I’d be reluctant to give. Something that you’re bribing me for?” Caleb’s shoulders started tense and Essik could tell that he was beginning to close off protectively.

Essik shook his head and shut the door once more. “It’s not a bribe. I don’t wish for you to think of it that way. This isn’t an attempt at manipulation, this is just…” he paused, unable to put it into words. “A show of friendship. I wish to be your friend, Caleb.”

Caleb took a step towards him and looked him over, trying to find a lie in his posture or expression and seeing none. He was hiding something, for sure, but he wasn’t lying. “And? What else?”

Essik hesitated, then finally gave Caleb a charming smile. “I would very much like to kiss you someday.” Caleb’s eyes widened but otherwise his feelings didn’t make it to his expression. He stared at Essik’s shoes nervously for a moment and Essik could practically see his mind running a million miles an hour.

Caleb didn’t look back at him right away, then sighed and crossed his arms nervously over his chest. “I- I’m not… I’m not made for that kind of stuff. You’re very kind, Essik, and thank you for the books, but you’re better off pursuing someone else.”

Essik watched him for a moment and tried to catch his eyes, but Caleb refused to look up from the floor.

Essik’s smile was kind even though his eyes were sad. “Very well. If that is your answer, I will accept it. I hope you enjoy the books, Mr. Widogast.” Essik turned once more to leave and as he reached for the doorknob, Caleb spoke again.

“Maybe… Maybe dinner would be nice, if you’re… If you’re okay with holding off on the other thing you mentioned. For now.”

Essik turned back to him, his usual steady, smiling face instead serious but hopeful. “Are you sure?”

Caleb’s tense shoulders relaxed. “Yeah. Dinner… Dinner would be nice.”

Essik’s face bloomed with happiness for the first time that Caleb had seen. “Excellent. Tonight? I’ll pick you up at seven?” Caleb cleared his throat and nodded, scratching nervously at his cheek. “I’m looking forward to it. Then Essik left him alone in the library. 

He instantly dropped down into a chair, pressed his forehead to his knees and cried out in frustration. “Agggggh! This is a bad idea, this is a bad idea… _ Nicht gut _ ...” he mumbled. “This can only end in heartbreak. I should run after him and tell him no.” But he did no such thing.


	4. Chapter 4

“Beau,” Jester called from the doorway of their bedroom.

Beau looked up from the notes she was taking, several books and notebooks spread out around her on the bed. “Yeah?”

“Caleb wants to talk to you.” She pouted as she skipped in.

“What’s wrong?”

“Caleb wouldn’t let me help him get dressed for his date.”

Beau chuckled and rolled her eyes as she climbed up to her feet. “I meant with Caleb.”

“Oh. I don’t know. He just called for you and wouldn’t unlock the door even when I pretended to be you.”

Beau paused in a the doorway and turned back to her. “You pretended to me? What did you say?”

Jester cleared her throat and when she spoke her voice was almost an exact match to Beau’s tone and accent. The problem was with what she said. “Caleb, it is me, I’m super powerful and stuff! If you don’t open this door I will punch it down, man.”

Beau opened her mouth to say something, whether it would be to complain or critique she wasn’t sure, but decided better of it and just left the room. She walked downstairs and down the hall to Caleb’s room, sighing as she leaned against the wall and knocked on the wood with her knuckles.

“Yo!” she called. “What do you want?”

There was a clicking noise and the door creaked open. Beau rolled her eyes but pushed her way inside. Caleb let her inside and then shut the door back, twist the lock securely. He started pacing around the room, running his finger through his messy curls. He was wearing the nice linen and trousers that Nott and Jester got him once more, though he hadn’t put on the vest or shoes yet. 

“I’m panicking… a bit.”

“A bit? Man, you look like you’re about the shake out of your skin. Sit the fuck down and tell me what’s bothering you.” When he didn’t move to sit, she pushed his shoulders and forced him down into the chair by the window, sitting across from him on the bed. “Breathe, Caleb. Look at me.” He did. “You have to breathe. In… Out… Alright, now tell me what’s up.”

Caleb twisted his fingers nervously in his lap. “I cannot do this. I am going on a date, I mean… what the fuck, right? Why am I doing this?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, why are you doing this? Why did you agree to it?”

“He…” Caleb paused and squeezed his eyes shut briefly. “After I said no he called me ‘Mr. Widogast’ again.”

“That’s it? It’s your name. Or well- It’s not really your name, but you know what I mean.”

“He usually calls me ‘Caleb’ and I… I like it. I like him.” Just saying those words seemed like he having to force them out. She could understand that it was hard for him to admit when he liked things. She felt the same way. Liking things made you vulnerable when they were taken away. And they were always taken away.

“If you’re not going to have fun, then what’s the point?” She asked. “If you don’t want to go, just ask Jester to call him up and tell him you changed your mind. Or, maybe Caduceus will be better for this. He delivers bad news so gently.”

“I don’t want to cancel.”

“Then what the fuck are you panicking about? You’re not gonna cancel, he’s definitely not gonna cancel. It’s gonna happen, there’s no use worrying about it.”

He took a deep breath in through his nose and held it for a few seconds before letting it out. “Were you nervous? On your first date?”

She shrugged. “Never been on a date. Not like this, anyway. Does it count as a date when you meet up with someone, have sex, and then leave?”

“I don’t… think so. But I am not exactly an expert.”

“How is this your first date, man? Aren’t you, like, forty?”

“Thirty-three,” he muttered indignantly. “I spent eleven years locked away and before that I was at the Academy. There was… someone. But she and I never went on dates, we just studied together and made out in closets between class.”

Beau gasped, delighted. “Was teenage Caleb a delinquent?”

“What if he doesn’t like me?” he asked, ignoring her question.

“I’m not going to dignify that with an answer.” She picked his vest up off the bed and threw it at him. He scrambled to catch it out of the air. “You’re going to be fine. And, if he does break you heart, he’ll have me to worry about.”

Caleb couldn’t contain a small, fond smile. “What if… What if I break his?”

“Then he’s on his own, I’m on your side. Always.” She pulled him into a hug and squeezed a little too hard. He grunted in pain but didn’t complain. They both looked up when a chime echoed around the house to indicate that someone had walked in through the front door. “That’s him. You ready?”

“No.” But he marched out the door anyway. He came back into the room a moment later. “Shoes… I need shoes…”


End file.
